


I'll Be Home For Christmas

by allstoriesintheend



Series: Home Is Me, You Are Mine [2]
Category: Captain America (Movies)
Genre: AU of an AU, Alternate Universe, Captain America: The First Avenger, F/M, Howling Commandos - Freeform, Original Female Character(s) - Freeform, RED Soldier - Freeform, World War II
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-26 12:46:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17142014
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allstoriesintheend/pseuds/allstoriesintheend
Summary: The kitchen seemed quiet even as Ruby approached, though she knew both George and Becca were waiting for her in it. Before she could get there, the telephone started to ring. Ruby turned to look, heading toward the receiver that was placed on-top of the piano. It didn’t ring often, and recently, it had been ringing for people to offer their condolences. She took a deep breath to prepare herself for whoever would be calling now, answering the phone call in a polite manner.“Hello?”“…Ruby?”





	I'll Be Home For Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> Imagine if Steve had told Bucky the news about Ruby in chapter 19? 
> 
> Well. This is what would have happened.

**April 17 th, SSR Facility, France, 1944** **  
** **  
**  
  
  
“…”  
  
Of all the voices Bucky had been expecting to answer his phone call, Ruby wasn’t one he had considered. However, it didn’t particularly register as odd as happiness coursed through him at it being Ruby who had answered. A sharp pain twisted through his gut at the sound of her voice, with his legs threatening to give out from underneath him. He pressed his other hand against his other ear, blocking out the noise of the other men around him. Steve was talking to Dum-Dum, while the rest of the boys Bucky had met were murmuring amongst themselves behind him.   
  
          “Bucky?!”   
  
The surprise in her shriek made him let out a quiet laugh. He didn’t stop to think about how much of a shock it would be, to hear a dead man’s voice, but focused on the sound of the happiness that had filled the way she said his name.   
  
          “Yeah, sweetheart. It’s me. Just, uh, callin’ in to make sure ya know I ain’t dead.”   
  
          “But they – you – I knew you were alive! I knew it!”   
  
          “Ya did, huh?” Bucky paused, letting out a relieved sigh. “It’s good to hear your voice, Ruby. Y’don’t know how much I missed it.”   
  
          “You’re alive…”  
  
          “Gonna take more than gettin’ captured to kill me.”  
  
          “… Is that what happened to you? Bucky…” A crackle sounded out as Ruby’s voice fell quiet. “Bucky. Are you okay…? They didn’t… They didn’t hurt you, did they?”  
  
          “Nah. Just overworked us. I’m alright, I promise.”   
  
          “How did you…?”  
  
          “Steve. Stupid jerk flew out behind enemy lines to come and get us. Most of the 107thgot caught.”  
  
          “So you know about –”  
  
          “Yeah, I know what happened to him. Don’t worry, I clapped him around the head for it.” Bucky laughed as Ruby did, but he caught the slight sob that broke the noise. “Hey, pretty girl. What’re ya cryin’ for?”  
  
          “Everyone thought… They thought you were gone, Bucky. You don’t know how hard it’s been, thinking that you weren’t coming home… And I tried to tell myself that you were, that you wouldn’t leave me, but it’s been so…”   
  
As Ruby trailed off, Bucky’s chest tightened. He would have given everything to pull Ruby into his arms at that moment and tell her everything was going to be okay, and to ease her tears. Knowing that he was so far away and unable to do that filled him with guilt.  
  
          “I know – I know. I’m sorry ya had to think I was dead, but I fought through. Y’know what kept me goin’?”  
  
          “What?”  
  
          “You. Thinkin’ about ya, thinkin’ that I was gonna come home to ya, thinkin’ about you singin’… You’re what kept me goin’. Every day I was in there. Sometimes, you were all I could remember.”  
  
          “Really?”  
  
          “Yeah. You saved my life, Red.”  
  
A smile twitched at his lips as he heard the slight breathy laugh that Ruby gave out. He then heard voices in the background, and Ruby’s voice became hurried.   
  
          “Becca wants to speak to you. I’m going to pass you over, okay?”  
  
          “’Kay.”  
  
          “You’re a jerk!” Becca’s voice shouted down the line. Bucky broke into a laugh, shaking his head in amusement.  
  
          “Sorry, ya want me to go and actually be dead?”  
  
          “Ya had me cryin’ over nothin’, idiot! I really thought you were dead!”   
  
          “Sorry to disappoint ya, Bec. You’re not the only Barnes left.”   
  
          “Good. Didn’t wanna be both of us anyways.” Becca quieted, then came back in a much softer tone. “Are you okay?”  
  
          “I’m fine, Bec. Honest. Now, how about you, huh? How’s school goin’? No boys have been askin’ ya out on dates, right?”  
  
          “That’s what you’re worried about?”  
  
          “Well, I gotta know! Tell ‘em that if they wanna take ya out, they gotta talk to your big brother first. Have ‘em send me a letter and I’ll decide.”  
  
          “Oh, shut up, Bucky. I’ll go out with who I want, when I want.”  
  
          “When you’re eighteen, yeah.” Bucky snickered at the tone Becca had used. “Until then, they gotta go through me.”  
  
          “You’re so over-protective.” Becca then fell quiet, lowering her voice. “I miss you, Bucky.”   
  
          “I miss ya too, Bec. Feels like forever since I last saw ya.”   
  
          “You’ll come home safe, right?”  
  
          “’Course I will. Now listen up, huh? I ain’t gonna get another phone call, so ya gotta write me instead. I wanna know all about school and these boys that you’re thinkin’ of datin’. Alright?”  
  
          “Alright.”   
  
There were more quiet voices in the background on Becca’s side of the phone, until he could hear shuffling around.   
  
          “Pop wants to speak to ya now, Bucky. I’ll go and write ya right now, alright? Love ya, jerk. Don’t go dyin’ again now, ‘kay?”  
  
          “Yeah, yeah. I got it. Hey, Bec?”  
  
          “Yeah?”  
  
          “Love ya too.”   
  
Becca’s giggle down the line grew quieter, and was replaced with a deep voice that made Bucky feel ten years old. He pressed his hand against his ear harder to be able to hear his father, shutting his eyes tightly.  
  
          “Pop, I –”  
  
          “Are you alright?” The concern in George’s voice made him tremble, and Bucky found himself admitting something that he didn’t even realise.   
  
          “No.”   
  
He wasn’t okay. Not in the slightest. While it was easy to keep up the charade around the boys and Steve, and even around the General and Agent Carter, Bucky wasn’t okay. Whatever Zola had done to him still wasn’t wearing off, and it terrified Bucky to the point where he wanted to curl up and cry.   
  
          “I don’t know what they did to me, Pop. They gave me a load’a shots, and they ain’t wearin’ off. I keep forgettin’ things that I’m supposed to remember – Steve had’ta dial the number for me. I couldn’t even remember that. They’re all puttin’ it off as exhaustion, but I know it’s not.”   
  
          “Somethin’ else?”  
  
          “I’m scared.” By now, his voice was a whisper. He tried to keep himself still instead of trembling, but it was a failing attempt. “I don’t know what’s goin’ on with me.”   
  
          “You’re a strong kid, Buck. Always have been. You’ll get through it.”   
  
          “They said I can come home,” Bucky admitted. “They said after everythin’ I went through, I can come home if I wanna. They’d release me on the grounds of injury.”  
  
          “Do ya wanna?”  
  
          “… I don’t wanna disappoint ya.” Bucky’s lip quivered. There was silence on the other end of the line, until George’s voice came back just as quiet as Bucky’s was.   
  
          “That’s what you’re worried about?”  
  
          “I know I ain’t done a lot for ya to be proud of – maybe not even anythin’, but you were proud of me when I was gettin’ on the train. You were proud of me when I got my orders. I don’t wanna come home now just because I got scared, and disappoint ya.” Bucky chewed his bottom lip long after he had finished talking, waiting for the response. George remained silent on the other side of the call, making Bucky wonder if it had broken and he had lost his father entirely.   
  
          “… Boy, if I could clip ya round the head right now, I would.”   
  
          “Huh?”  
  
          “I’m not just proud of ya because you’re in the army, James. I’m proud of ya for a whole lotta things. Maybe I don’t tell ya enough, but I am.”  
  
          “Yeah?”  
  
          “Yeah. Y’know I ain’t so good with words. That was always your Ma’s thing. I’m real proud of ya for more than ya know, and she would be too. So… Ya don’t got anythin’ to be scared about. I ain’t gonna be mad at ya.”  
  
          “I wanna come home…” Bucky’s eyes opened so that he could glance back at the group of men behind him. They were good men, strong men, but Bucky couldn’t keep up with them. Not while he was like this.   
  
          “Then ya can. Tell ‘em.”  
  
          “Yeah – yeah. I will. I… Thanks, Pop.”   
  
          “Now, don’t go gettin’ sappy on me.” George let out a quick laugh, but Bucky could have sworn that he heard his father sniff up. “I’m gonna pass ya back over to Ruby now, alright? Take care of yaself, Bucky.”   
  
          “I will.”   
  
As the receiver was passed around on the other end of the line, Bucky found himself sighing happily when Ruby was once again the one talking to him.   
  
          “Hey, sweetheart. How’re ya doin’?”  
  
          “I’m… Bucky, there’s something I need to tell you.”   
  
          “Yeah?” The guarded tone in Ruby’s voice had Bucky’s eyebrows knitting together in concern. That was a tone he hadn’t heard often, and it placed a pool of worry in his stomach.   
  
          “What’s the matter, Ruby?”  
  
          “Well, I… I don’t know how to…”  
  
          “Is somethin’ wrong? Talk to me, Ruby.”   
  
          “Bucky, I’m p –”  
  
A slap landed on Bucky’s left shoulder so hard that he jumped and dropped the telephone. The cord caught it, dangling it above the ground. Bucky whirled around to see Dum–Dum standing there, raising his eyebrows at him.   
  
          “Nearly done, Barnes? We tossed coins on who’s goin’ next. Gabe’s waitin’ to call.”   
  
          “Just give me a couple more minutes, alright? Jesus.” Bucky growled, snatching the cord back into his hands. “I gotta tell Ruby somethin’.”   
  
          “Alright, alright.” Dum-Dum held his hands up at Bucky, walking backward away from him. The second he was out of arms reach, Bucky pressed the receiver back to his ear and prayed that he hadn’t lost Ruby.   
  
          “Ruby?”  
  
          “Bucky…?” Her quiet voice settled him immediately, dousing the anger that had been building.   
  
          “Thank God,” Bucky inhaled deeply, closing his eyes again. “Dum-Dum made me drop the phone. Tellin’ me that the rest of the boys were waitin’ to call next. They can wait a couple minutes more, right? Now, what were ya sayin’?”   
  
          “…Nothing. I just wanted…” Ruby paused. Bucky heard a quiet sigh on her end. “I just wanted to tell you how much I miss you.”   
  
          “Well, how ‘bout you tell me in person, huh?”   
  
          “What?”  
  
          “I’m gonna be comin’ home real soon. They said they’re gonna release me. Somethin’ to do with how long I was caught for.”   
  
          “You’re coming home?”  
  
          “Yeah, sweetheart. I’m comin’ home.”   
  
He could hear the break in Ruby’s voice as she started to babble down the phone, and the tears he could clearly picture rolling down her face. Bucky let out a quiet laugh, with a few of his own tears start to fall.   
  
          “When?”  
  
          “They’re shippin’ me out as soon as possible. Won’t be long before I’m back in Brooklyn. I’ll send ya a letter and let ya know when, but I might get home before it.”   
  
          “I can’t wait to see you. I have so much to tell you, Bucky…”   
  
          “Yeah? Well good, because I’m gonna not wanna let ya go anyways. We’re gonna spend a whole lotta time together when we get back. Promise.”  
  
          “You mean it?”  
  
          “I ever broke a promise to ya before?”   
  
          “No.”   
  
          “Then I ain’t gonna be breakin’ this one.” Bucky opened his eyes again, rubbing just underneath them to get rid of the tears. The rest of the men were now talking quietly, and Bucky could see Gabe glancing over toward him every few seconds.   
  
          “Look, I gotta go now, alright? The boys are waitin’.”   
  
          “I miss you, Bucky.”   
  
          “I miss ya too. Now, put on that smile for me, huh? Chin up, beautiful. I’m comin’ home. And Ruby?”  
  
          “Yes?”  
  
          “I love you.”  
  
          “I love you too.”   
  
Those words sent a warmth straight through him, easing the still slight burning of his bones. If he could have her repeat that over and over until he got home and was able to kiss her, then he would have.   
  
          “See ya real soon, Ruby.”  
  
          “Goodbye…”   
  
  
          Though he didn’t want to, Bucky was the one to hang up the receiver first. He rubbed at his eyes to ease the tears that were pricking them and threatening to fall, grunting in frustration.  
  
          “C’mon, Barnes! Jones is waiting!”  
  
          “Just give me a minute, alright?!” Bucky snapped over his shoulder, but didn’t turn to look. A gentle pat met his shoulder and he turned to glare at whoever it was, but the look died when he saw it to be Steve. Bucky sniffed up as Steve led him away from the phone, allowing Gabe to get up and rush toward it.   
  
          “How’d it go?”   
  
          “Great. Spoke to Bec, and my Pop, and Ruby. She answered the phone.”   
  
          “Ruby? What’s she doin’ there?”  
  
          “Didn’t ask. It’s Sunday, right? She’s probably goin’ with ‘em to Church.” Bucky shrugged. Truthfully, he wasn’t putting much thought into it. Ruby had said that she would visit his father and sister often, and if she wanted to go over so early on a Sunday, then he wasn’t about to be pulling her up for it. Steve patted his shoulder once more as he brought Bucky toward a table, sitting down with him.  
  
          “So, I’ve been thinkin’.”   
  
          “About how stupid you were for goin’ so far over enemy lines with a goddamn shield for protection?” Bucky lifted his brows, letting out an exhale of air. “Because I really think ya should be.”  
  
          “Nah. I was thinkin’… I’m gonna stay.”   
  
          “What, in France? I know you’re this whole new Steve now, but ya don’t speak a damn word of French, pal. Ya won’t last.”   
  
          “No, ya jerk. In the Army.”  
  
Bucky’s heart plummeted. Steve in the army. That was the one thing he had never wanted – even now that he was the super-soldier version of himself. Bucky didn’t trust Steve to not do something stupid, like he already had done. If that was his first stunt as ‘Captain America’, what would be the next one? It was a thought that Bucky didn’t want to consider, and he knew there was only one way to make sure his best friend stayed alive.   
  
          “Then… I’m stayin’ too.”   
  
He could feel the crack that didn’t show in his expression run right through to his very core. He wouldn’t be going home. It didn’t matter how terrified he was, or how much he wanted to. He wouldn’t be leaving Steve out in the field alone, and that was the final decision.   
  
          “They said you could go –”  
  
          “Yeah, well, who else is gonna keep your dumb ass in line?”    
  
          “Ya don’t have to stay, Buck. Ya got a life to go home to.”   
  
          “Forget it. Ya came to save me, now I’m returnin’ the favour by stayin’ here.”   
  
Bucky waved his hand, forcing a smile. He ignored the way Steve’s eyes raked over his expression, and Bucky hid his true emotions under the mask that he had perfected so well since breaking out of the Hydra facility. Steve’s sceptic look didn’t break, making Bucky’s fingers begin to twitch.   
  
          “You told Ruby you were comin’ home, didn’t ya?”  
  
          “Yeah, but she’ll understand.” Bucky reasoned, though he truly doubted his own words. “She knows I keep your dumb ass in check.”  
  
          “Buck –”  
  
          “It ain’t an argument we’re havin’, Steve. I’m stayin’ here, alright?”   
  
Steve rubbed a hand over his face, almost looking sick. That look alone was enough to pull Bucky out of his stubborn attitude, prompting him to raise an eyebrow at the blond. A heavy sigh passed from Steve’s lips as he met Bucky’s blue eyes once more, shaking his head.   
  
          “You can’t stay, Bucky.”  
  
          “Look, pal. I ain’t about to let you just –”  
  
          “This ain’t about me. It’s about Ruby.”  
  
          “What about Ruby?” Bucky’s tone had turned sharp, narrowing his eyes at Steve. Worry began to gnaw at the back of Bucky’s mind, thinking up the worst scenarios that he could envision. Ruby telling Steve that she couldn’t cope with the distance, and had found somebody new. Her father having set her up with a boy from where she had lived previously, and Ruby with a glittering ring on her finger. Silence began to spread between the two, until Bucky couldn’t handle it.   
  
          “For fuck’s sake, Steve! What about Ruby?!”  
  
          “I promised I wouldn’t tell ya…”  
  
          “You better spit it out or I’m gonna –”  
  
          “Alright!”

 

* * *

 

 **April 26 th, Brooklyn, New York, 1944**  
  
  
  
         Ruby was humming to herself as she cleaned along the surface of the piano, running her fingers gently across the keys. Bucky’s arrival home would be any day now, and she wanted to make sure that the house was perfect for him. She had spent any spare time cleaning it up, as well as preparing herself with what she was going to say to him when he arrived home. There was an almost change in her figure now, with a barely-there swell beginning to show itself on her middle. She had decided that she would let him get settled first, and get used to being home, before she would present him with a card of congratulations over dinner. Becca and George had agreed to allow them to eat alone so that she could properly surprise him – and George had been assuring her that Bucky would only take it well.   
  
          “You know, your daddy loves it when I play the piano. Would you like to hear something, little one?”   
  
Being the only one in the house, Ruby could freely talk to the baby in any room she wanted to. She seated herself at the piano, fanning out her skirt on the seat. Delicate fingers brushed across the keys once more, and Ruby readied herself to play. She opened her mouth to begin singing as the first keys were pressed, but the note died on her lips as a knock came to the door. Ruby hurried up from her seat and ran the short distance, pulling open the door with a grin.   
  
          “…Oh.”   
  
          “Yeah, I know,” the mailman chuckled. “Ya got international mail.”   
  
          “No, I was expecting – well, the man who’s written me to be knocking on the door.” Ruby blushed slightly, taking the letter from him. “He said he might beat his letter back, and knocking on his own front door is something he’d find amusing.”   
  
          “Barnes, right? I know the kid. He’s comin’ home?”  
  
          “Yes. He should be here any day now, I think. They said they were shipping him back home as soon as they possibly could.”   
  
          “Won’t be long now, then. Letters take nine days or so anyways.” He tipped his hat to her, starting to walk back down the small pathway. “Have a nice day, ma’am.”   
  
          “Thank-you! You too!”   
  
Ruby closed the door, clutching the letter to her chest. In moments, she was opening the envelope and freeing the worn paper from it, heart racing. Bucky said he was writing her with the date – and if the letter took nine days to reach her, then he would be home the day or so after, surely. Bright blue eyes quickly read over the letter more than once, until her brows furrowed into a slight frown. On the entire sheet that Ruby now held between her hands, there were only two words written on it. It took Ruby a while to process it, but when she did, the paper slipped from her fingers and her hands flew to her stomach protectively.

  
 ** _  
I Know.  
_**  
  
Worry shot through Ruby faster than anything else could. Bucky knew – and Bucky was letting her know that. Steve must have told him everything, she decided. Steve had broken his promise and told Bucky everything, and Ruby now didn’t have the chance to tell Bucky herself. Her hands twisted into the fabric of her dress, matching the knots that her stomach was now turning into. The two words gave Ruby no idea of what Bucky felt; whether he was happy or now hated her. It was all her fault, she supposed. She had been the one to encourage Bucky into dropping his willpower when he was at his weakest. Any other time, and Bucky would have never let it happen. She knew that. He had been trying to be so careful with her, and all it had taken for her to be now carrying their child was her gently nudging him over his own resolve.   
  
          “He’s going to hate me…”   
  
The empty room only made her words seem more real. Doubt began to gnaw at the back of her mind – maybe Bucky wouldn’t even come home to her. Maybe he would go to Steve’s apartment and invite George and Becca over to see him, but leave her out. Maybe he would no longer want her. After all, taking care of a child would be the last thing Bucky would want after coming home from a war. Ruby’s stomach began to churn uncomfortably, and within minutes she was clutching at the porcelain of the toilet, emptying the little contents of her stomach into it. The thought of Bucky hating her had not only made her want to shrink into herself, but had made her physically sick. She knew she couldn’t handle it if Bucky hated her. If Bucky hated her, she would be shunned away from the only family she had left. The echo of the cab driver that had dropped her off played over in her mind – there were always places for girls like her to go. Unwed mothers. For a brief moment, Ruby wondered. If she did end up there, she would never see Bucky again, nor her family. Everyone she had in the world would have shut her out, leaving her in the cold with nothing but her child and a small suitcase of belongings. That would be all she would have in the world. No money, no home, and nobody who cared about her.   
  


  
          Ruby’s fear hadn’t eased even after George and Becca had returned home. The two had tried to ease her and reassure her that Bucky wasn’t the type of boy who would kick her out on the street because she was pregnant – and George had reminded her that if Bucky even dared, he would clip his son around the head so hard he would see stars – but their reassurances fell on deaf ears. Ruby didn’t need them to tell her what they thought Bucky would think. The only person she needed to hear it from was Bucky, and without a clue as to when he would be making his arrival home, it was getting more difficult to mask the sad expression that had been threatening to take over throughout the day.  
  
          “Y’know, dinner’s gonna get cold if ya just keep pushin’ it around your plate.”   
  
          “I’m not very hungry.” Ruby’s voice was quiet, but she refused to look up at George. She heard the soft sigh pass his lips as he stood, moving from his place across the table so that he could take Becca’s now empty seat next to her.   
  
          “He’s not gonna be mad, Ruby. He loves ya.”  
  
          “Me. He loves me. What if he doesn’t love…” One hand brushed against her barely-there bump, glancing up at George with a resigned look in her eyes.   
  
          “Are you kiddin’ me?” Dark brows shot up in surprise, until George was shaking his head softly at her. “Ruby. Listen to me. Bucky ain’t gonna love you any less. Matter of fact, he’s probably gonna love ya more than you know what to do with. You’ll have to fight him off with a damn broom.”  
  
          “I don’t think…”   
  
Ruby’s voice fell quiet as a knock echoed from the front door. The eye contact with George was broken as Ruby rushed to stand and hurry to answer the knock, forgetting all about dinner in her flurry. The loose strands of blonde were pushed behind her ears and there was an attempt made at straightening out her skirt before she even dared turn the key in the door, but a bubble of panic rose in the pit of her stomach.   
  


          A bubble that was quickly erased with the sight that awaited her on the other side of the door. Standing a few feet from the porch was the face she had waited months to see. The strong arms she dreamt about being in every night, and the blue eyes that were filled with nothing but love and adoration that she had missed staring at her so. He looked almost the same as he had done when he had been taken away from her, right down to the way his hat was tilted on his head. The duffel bag slung over his shoulder was dropped to the floor. Ruby’s shy smile grew when she noticed the bouquet of red roses in Bucky’s hand, but her breath was completely taken away when he opened his mouth to speak. 

          “Hey, sweetheart.” 

          “Bucky… Bucky!” 

Ruby didn’t give him chance to speak again. She ran the short distance to Bucky and flung her arms around his shoulders, burying her face into the crook of his neck. Bucky’s arms went around her instantly and he leaned back, lifting her up in his hold. His laughter brought out a laugh of her own, mixed in with her sobs. 

          “I missed you so much, Red. So damn much.”

His face pressed into her hair, muffling his words. Even so, Ruby could hear the soft break in his voice that threatened tears. The tight hold he had her in had been missed so much that a small whine of protest left her as he put her down, only to be silenced as his lips met hers in a desperate kiss. Ruby melted into it, her knees going weak, while her hands curled into the lapels of his uniform jacket to keep him close. Both of his hands came to cup her face, stroking rough thumbs against her soft cheeks. The kiss had all the feeling of a first, while the emotion that both were trying to portray through it made it seem like a last kiss. Ruby didn’t know how much time had passed when they broke apart, but she had never wanted it to stop. His hands slipped down from her face again, running down to her sides, until she became painfully aware of the small swell of her stomach hidden beneath her dress. Bucky’s letter came rushing back to her mind, making her fingers tighten in the fabric of his jacket until her knuckles were white. Her blue eyes looked up to meet Bucky’s, finding the strength within herself to open her mouth and talk. 

          “I – I wanted to tell you, so many times… But I didn’t want – want you to worry about us… Not while you were out there. If you got hurt because you were worrying about me – I couldn’t live with myself, Bucky. I couldn’t… And I didn’t want to scare you away. I love you, and the thought of you not wanting me – not wanting the baby – and telling me to leave…” 

          “Shh…” 

Bucky’s lips pressed against hers once more, this time in a sweet, soft kiss. His hands moved from her waist to rest comfortably against the slight bump she had, rubbing his palms gently over the fabric of her dress. Any doubt that Ruby had been holding onto slipped away, now only feeling happiness swell inside of her. Bucky still wanted her – and more importantly, he wanted both of them. He wanted their family, and that notion fixed every break that had been caused when she had been turned out by her own parents. 

          When their second kiss broke, Ruby’s eyes didn’t open immediately. That gave Bucky enough time to sink down onto one knee, reaching for her left hand with both of his. Ruby’s eyes fluttered open, a blissful smile on her face – and one that only grew when she realised what Bucky was doing. He pressed a kiss to her knuckles, keeping her hand gently held in his. 

          “Will you marry me, Ruby?” 

Ruby came to kneel in front of him, watching the curious look grow in his eyes. Carefully, she took his hat from him and dropped it to the floor beside them, running her free hand through the brown locks that flopped over his forehead. She leaned forward enough to press a kiss to the side of his mouth, smiling against his skin. 

          “Yes.”   
  
  
  


* * *

 

** December 24th, Brooklyn, New York, 1944   
  
**

 

          Ruby shifted forward slightly, giving Bucky enough time to slip his arm around her shoulders and pull her against his side. She pulled the blanket up around them, leaning her head against his chest with a content sigh. The faint glow of the burning candles on the mantle were the only light in the sitting room, setting a relaxed mood. It flickered enough to bounce off of the baubles that were decorating their small Christmas tree, and outline the little collection of gifts underneath it.

          “Nice and quiet, huh?” Bucky murmured. He pressed a kiss to the top of her head at the same time she patted his leg, nodding against his chest. 

          “For now.”

          “He’s a real sleeper.” 

          “Just like his daddy,” Ruby teased. Bucky chuckled quietly, rubbing her shoulder. 

          “Poor kid. It’s a damn good job he looks like you, or else there’d be no hope for him.”

          “Oh, shush, Bucky.” Ruby smacked her hand softly against his thigh, making another chuckle slip from his lips. “You did pretty well for yourself, didn’t you?”

          “Only because I got you,” Bucky murmured, “and the kid.” 

Ruby smiled to herself, glancing over the arm of the sofa to the hallway that led to their bedroom. Sleeping soundly in his crib was their three week old son, Junior. True to what Bucky had said – he had her features, down to the tufts of blonde hair that Bucky enjoyed fluffing up. It was rare that Ruby didn’t wake up to find Bucky in the rocking chair with their son in his arms, both of them asleep. If Junior woke during the night, Bucky was more often than not the one who woke to calm him back down.

          Though he hadn’t the slightest idea of how to raise a child, Ruby had to admit that Bucky had done nothing but thrown himself into it as much as he could. At first, Ruby thought Bucky wouldn’t take to it. At first, Bucky hadn’t wanted to hold him. When the nurse had offered Junior to him, Bucky had refused. Ruby had bitten her lip, scared that after everything, Bucky wasn’t as ready as he had thought. It was only later, when there were only the two of them left that he had admitted to being scared. Scared of dropping him, scared of hurting him unintentionally. Ruby silenced him with a kiss and offered their son to him, telling him how to hold his arms so that Junior would be comfortable. Once their baby had settled in Bucky’s arms, Ruby watched him fall completely in love. As soon as he held their son, Bucky changed. Adoration filled each gaze and he had instantly started to talk to him, while Ruby got to watch affectionately.   
          

          “You know I haven’t got you a lot, right?” Bucky’s voice broke the comfortable silence. Ruby shifted under his arm, pushing herself to sit up so that she could look at him. 

          “Bucky, you’ve given me everything.” Ruby pressed a chaste kiss to his lips, silencing him from making any further comment. “You gave me our son, you gave me you, and you came home to me.” 

          “But –”

          “If anything, I haven’t got you a lot.” Ruby’s voice fell quiet. Her gaze fell, looking at her hands that were now resting on her lap. “You deserve so much more than I can give you, Bucky…”

          “Ruby. Look at me, huh?” Bucky’s fingers slipped under her chin, getting her to tilt her head back up so that he could meet her eyes. A soft sigh left her as she met his gaze, finding a loving look awaiting her. 

          “You gave up everythin’ for me. Everythin’.”

          “For us,” Ruby whispered. “I did it for our family.”

          “And that’s all I want. I want our son, and I want you.” Bucky’s hand traced against her jaw, tucking a loose curl behind her ear. “Think ya can live with that, Mrs. Barnes?”

          “Only if you don’t call me that,” Ruby smiled. “Now, are you going to come to bed? It’s almost midnight… And you won’t like it if Junior gets you up at the break of dawn on Christmas day.” 

          “Are you kiddin’?” Bucky grinned, but started to make a move to stand while Ruby pulled their blanket into her arms. “I can’t wait until he’s old enough to be jumpin’ all over the bed to wake us up about Christmas. Hey, maybe we’ll have another one by then, huh?”

          “You really think so, do you?” Ruby raised a brow in amusement, watching him blow out the candles. Bucky came back toward her in the dark, wrapping an arm around her waist to pull her against him. 

          “Maybe.”

          “I think you’ll be lucky, James Buchanan Barnes.”

          “Lucky’s my kinda thing.”   
  
          Ruby rolled her eyes as they made their way down the hall, stepping into their bedroom quietly. Bucky was first over to the crib, reaching down to stroke his son’s fluffy hair while Ruby threw their blanket back over their bed. They then switched places, Bucky sliding into bed as Ruby leaned over the crib. Junior was sound asleep, with both of his hands clutched into little, chubby fists. She pressed a kiss to her fingertips and then brushed them against his cheek, smiling. She cast another long glance at her son before she turned on her heel, slipping beneath the sheets to curl up with Bucky. As his arms slipped securely around her and a kiss was pressed to her cheek, she allowed her eyes to close. Bucky sighed, gently tracing circles on her lower back. 

          “Merry Christmas, sweetheart.”

**Author's Note:**

> I really hope you enjoyed this! I know it's been quite some time (a ridiculous amount) since I penned anything for Home Is Me, You Are Mine. 
> 
> Thanks - as always - for sticking with me and with the story, and loving the pairing of Bucky and Ruby so much.


End file.
